If you haven't noticed, I purchase yogurt often as most of my family members eat it once a day. I am constantly on the lookout for great yogurt coupons and it truly makes my day when I find a great deal on it! After hearing about homemade yogurt from my friend Alice, I just couldn't stop wondering about the process. Is it easy? Does it taste good? Finally, several months ago I went out on a limb and decided to try it out.
I researched it extensively and settled on trying the crock pot method of making yogurt. No fancy gadgets or tools, simply a cup of yogurt, some milk and a crock pot. Easy enough, right?
Right! No joke! It does take some time, but very minimal effort is required and the outcome is healthful, delicious and so inexpensive! I've since made it several times, testing out different yogurt starters and methods.
Just to clear the air- homemade yogurt does taste different than store bought yogurt. It doesn't have sugar, for one and second, it just tastes very simple. Also, no matter what I've tried, I can't get it as thick as store-bought yogurt, which is why I still buy yogurt. Homemade yogurt in a bowl is too difficult for my little kids to eat! It dribbles all over the table and down their chins and is frustrating for us both. However I love it- especially when I add a bit of juice and drink it, much like those pricey store-bought yogurt smoothies! It's also great in recipes and milkshakes. I've substituted it in recipes for mayonnaise, sour cream, or even butter milk.
Here's how I did it...
Homemade Yogurt
Ingredients:
1/2 gallon whole milk
6-8 oz yogurt, to use as a starter {I love using Greek yogurt as it makes it a lot thicker!}
1/3 cup powdered milk
1 TBSP vanilla {optional}
1/3 cup sugar {optional}
fruit, as an addition once it's made {optional}
You'll also need a crock pot, heavy towel, candy thermometer and a cookie sheet.
- Slowly bring milk up to 180 degrees. Add powdered milk and whisk to dissolve.
- Cool milk down to 110 degrees.
- Whisk in starter yogurt, sugar and vanilla, if you choose. {I personally like it better without!}
- "Incubate" yogurt in a well-insulated place for 8-10 hours. {An oven works great!}
- Transfer yogurt to smaller containers, if necessary. Refrigerate until set, about 12 hours.
- Enjoy by iteself or with added fruit!
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Crock Pot Method: {Learned from A Year of Slow Cooking, with a few alterations}
Step 1: Plug in your crockpot and turn to low. Add an entire half gallon of milk. Cover and cook on low for 2.5 hours. When 2.5 hours is up, add the powdered milk and whisk to combine.
Step 2: Unplug your crockpot. Leave the lid on and let it sit for 3 hours.
Step 3: When 3 hours have passed, turn your oven on 170 degrees.
Step 4: Scoop out 2 cups of the warmish milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of store-bought live/active culture yogurt. Add sugar and vanilla, if you'd like. Then dump the bowl contents back into the crockpot. Whisk to combine.
Step 5: Put the lid back on your crockpot. Remove the crock and wrap a heavy bath towel all the way around it for insulation. Place it on a cookie sheet in the oven. Turn oven off.
Step 6: Go to bed, or let it sit for 8 hours.
Step 7: In the morning, the yogurt will have thickened! Transfer it to the container{s} of your choice and refrigerate.
{The pic above is some yogurt I made using regular plain yogurt as a starter. It was very creamy, but a lot thinner than the yogurt I've made using Greek yogurt as a starter.- see pic farther below.}
When it comes time to try it out, you can add fresh fruit, jam or a bit of sugar. As I said before, I like to thin mine out a bit with juice and drink it! It's also great with granola. If you prefer, freeze it in 1 cup measurements to use in recipes.
Your fresh yogurt will last 7-10 days. Save 1/2 cup as a starter to make a new batch.
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Short-Cut Crock Pot Method {as improvised by me, with the help of these 2 articles on making homemade yogurt on the stove.}
Essentially, this method shaves about 5 hours off the time it takes to make yogurt using the crock pot method. It does require some "hands on" effort, but in my opinion, it's worth it. This is my preferred method!
Step 1: Plug in your crockpot and turn to low.
Step 2: Get out a large saucepan and place it on medium temp on the stove. Add an entire half gallon of milk. When the milk begins to feel warm, add the powdered milk and whisk to dissolve. Leaving the burner on medium, you want to slowly bring the milk up to 180 degrees. You don't have to babysit it constantly, just stir it every once in a while to make sure nothing is collecting on the bottom. Mine took 40 minutes and I stirred it about once every 10 minutes.
Step 3: Before the milk is heated to 180 degrees, turn your oven on 170 degrees. Also fill your sink part way with col water and ice.
Step 4: When milk has reached 180 degrees, remove the pot from the burner and place it in the cold water. Make sure water isn't high enough to go in the pot. Mine covered the bottom 2-3 inches of the pot and it worked great. Cool milk down to 110 degrees. Mine took about 6-7 minutes to drop temps.
Step 5: After it has cooled, scoop out 2 cups of the warmish milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of store-bought live/active culture yogurt. Add sugar and vanilla, if you'd like. Then dump the bowl contents into the crockpot. Whisk to combine.
Step 6: Put the lid on your crockpot. Remove the crock and wrap a heavy bath towel all the way around it for insulation. Place it on a cookie sheet in the oven. Turn oven off.
Step 7: Go to bed, or let it sit for 8 hours.
{The yogurt above was made with Greek yogurt. It's so much thicker! I did use a whisk to make it creamier as this batch turned out with a grainy texture initially. See below for more info on that.}
Step 8: In the morning, the yogurt will have thickened! Transfer it to the container{s} of your choice and refrigerate.
Additional tips:
- You might see some clearish liquid on top of your yogurt when you lift the lid in the morning. This is just a nutritional by-product called whey. Not only is it normal, but it's super healthy! You can choose to drain it off using a ladle, or simply stir it in!
- Also, depending on what types of yogurt you use as a starter, your yogurt might have varied consistency. Your yogurt might look super creamy, or appear to have a slightly "grainy" texture. If it's grainy, a quick whisk will do the trick to make it creamy!
